Search For Missing Muskogee County Man Continues Near Webbers Falls

A search for a missing Muskogee County man is happening now near Webbers Falls.

Robert Welch's family says the 64-year-old has Dementia and he went missing on Wednesday.

Welch's last known location was at his home in Webbers Falls, which is surrounded by large fields of corn and the Arkansas River.

His family says they know it's a search against time.

"Pretty important... I mean, it's your dad. So, I mean, that's who brought you into the world," Laci Welch said as she fought back tears.

It has been five days since her father went missing from his home in Webbers Falls.

She says her father has dementia which has gotten worse over time to the point where he doesn't know where he's at or who his family is.

Laci says she worries her father wandered off and got lost.

"The corn fields, it's real easy. The river, it's just there in back and there's a lot of brush in between so he could get easily lost," Laci said.

Hundreds of acres of corn surround the area nearby and the river spans for miles.

Laci says the Quapaw Nation Emergency Management brought out K9's to join the search on Saturday.

K9 handler Hugh Murray says he wants others to know about their services so they can help families locate missing loved ones.

"We're happy to do this. You have to have a passion to do this. You know, sometimes you're joining people on their worst day of their life," Murray said.

The family says they are appreciative of all the efforts, but wish they knew about the services sooner.

"We would have known this Thursday he may be here at this point. There's so much here now at this point and the scent; that doesn't help at all. The scent slowly drifts. If we would have had these dogs Thursday, it probably would have been a lot better," Laci said.

Laci says neighbors also joined in on the search using crop dusters to fly low and search the fields.

If you have any information on where Robert Welch may be, you can contact the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service at 918-207-3801